


Recovery

by FandomsMJ



Category: Rescue Heroes (Cartoon)
Genre: Billy is Rocky's big brother, Gen, Nightmares, actually he's the entire team's big brother, alternate scene I guess?, but here we are, didn't expect to get inspiration from the movie, takes place during the 2003 movie, tw death mentioned, tw poisoning, you cannot change my mind on this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:27:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24740773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FandomsMJ/pseuds/FandomsMJ
Summary: Billy was going to wake up, he had to. Because Rocky didn't know how he was going to live with himself if his stupid stunt got Billy killed.
Relationships: Billy Blazes & Rocky Canyon
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Recovery

**Author's Note:**

> So yesterday my sister and I were looking up Rescue Hero names because we could remember a character that did xyz but couldn't remember their name. Well, in our search we saw a screencap of the 2003 movie and went "That looks like bad CG, let's watch it!" And yeah... this happened.

They had the plant and Matt was working on the antidote. There wasn't much else to do but rendezvous with the rest of the team in Greenland. Rocky stood beside Billy, not liking the slow rhythm on the heart monitor or how still he was. Every time his chest fell, Rocky feared it wouldn't rise again. 

He took Billy's gloved hand, gaze falling to the ungloved hand on the other side. The cause of all this an angry red mark nestled in a pale palm. The mark came from the thorn of a deadly plant, a thorn sharp enough to cut through a red glove. And the reason for that mark, the reason Billy had grabbed that cursed plant in the first place... that was the fault of a stupid rookie who should have listened to orders. 

The fault of a reckless, bullheaded, arrogant kid who was barely old enough to be a Rescue Hero and wasn't nearly mature enough. An idiot who thought he'd known better. A cocky, stupid, rock climber who thought his skills made common safety procedures obsolete. A kid who'd learned his lesson to late. 

If Billy died today, it would be Rocky's fault. And he didn't know how he was going to live with that. He didn't know how he could face the rest of the team. He didn't know how he was going to face Bobby. Didn't know what he was going to do when the Command Center became a little colder, a little emptier. 

Fingers tightened around his hand for just a moment, a groan escaping Billy. Dark eyes immediately went to his face, hoping to see green eyes looking back at him. He wasn't that lucky. Rocky shook his head. And yet, despite everything he couldn't help but smile sadly. 

He could remember so many times Billy telling the team not to give up and to never think the worst whenever someone went out of communication or was last seen in a dangerous and likely inescapable situation. He had to wonder if, even half-dead, Billy was trying to get that message across now. Probably not, but it helped to think that was the case. 

Matt came over and Rocky released Billy's hand and stepped back, letting the doctor work. He watched as the contents of a syringe was injected near the puncture wound. "What can we do now?" Rocky asked. 

"Wait," Matt answered simply, "And hope the antidote works." 

Rocky was called to the cockpit not long after. It was time to get back to work. He could only hope Billy would still be there when the job was done. 

* * *

"You gonna stay here all night?" Wendy's voice drew Rocky out of his thoughts. 

"What?" he mumbled. How long had he been sitting there? "What time is it?" 

The job in Greenland had been a success. Jack had a few minor injuries to recover from and Matt was keeping him over night for observation, but he was in better shape than Billy who still hadn't woken. 

"Late," Wendy answered as she came to stand beside him. "You should get some sleep." 

Rocky shook his head, "Wouldn't be able to." 

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Billy would want you to take care of yourself," Wendy pointed out. 

"Yeah, well, I'm not good at doing what he wants," Rocky muttered bitterly. 

"Rocky..." 

"The last time we spoke he barely spoke to me at all, that's how bad I've messed things up." And if Billy didn't make it, that was how it was going to end. The last few days filled with anger and tension. "Though we already know I really messed things up. I'm the reason he's dying." 

"Richmond that's enough." His actual first name almost sounded alien, it had been so long since someone had called him by that name. He looked up at Wendy, shocked. "Billy is _not_ dying. Matt says his vital signs are getting stronger, he's recovering. You learned from your mistake and did everything you could to make it right." 

She crouched down to be eye level with him, "And I'll let you in on a little secret, Rocky. He kept scolding you because he was worried. Not just about us and the fact that deviating from the plan puts others in danger. Disregarding the plan also puts _you_ in danger. You were putting yourself in unnecessary danger, and that worried him. As team leader it's Billy's job to protect all of us, you included." 

And did he get upset, perhaps even angry, when someone wasn't listening? Yeah. 

"I can't tell you how many times he's gotten onto me about my competitive nature, or scolded Jake for preforming unnecessary stunts on his bike. None of us are perfect and sometimes Billy needs to step in." She looked over at the still unconscious leader, "And sometimes he needs us to do the same. He should have told us he wasn't feeling well and he should have let us help him before he collapsed." 

"Yeah, I guess," Rocky murmured. 

"'I guess' nothing, I'm grounding him for this one," Wendy said as she stood up, looking at Billy as she spoke. 

"Doesn't he outrank you?" Rocky asked. 

"If he wants to argue he can take it up with my dad." She shrugged. 

Rocky gave a quiet chuckle at that, knowing Billy wouldn't. Granted, that was if he woke up. 

Wendy glanced at the clock, "I'm going to make one last round, make sure everything's locked up for the night. When I come back in forty-five minutes I expect you to be on your way to bed." 

"Alright, Wendy," Rocky sighed. He turned his attention back to Billy as Wendy left sick bay. He still didn't plan on leaving though. 

_Instead, when Wendy returned she'd find the exhausted Rescue Hero asleep in his chair. It hadn't been exactly what she'd meant, but she left him alone._

* * *

_The Command Center. Everyone calling out to him. His right hand stung. "Billy? Billy, what's wrong?" Jake's voice rising above the rest of the noise. The blurry figures of Jake and Rocky. He felt lightheaded. The floor rising up to greet him. A thud. Darkness._

Green eyes snapped open, the jumbled memories fading away. Where was he? What happened? The room was dimly lit, two softly glowing monitors the only light source. Someone was snoring on the other side of the room. Jake? No, Jack, it was Jack. But where were they? 

It took Billy's eyes a little longer to adjust to the dim lighting. Slowly the shadowy shapes took on familiar forms. Sick bay. That made sense. But why was Jack here? What had happened with the storms? He moved to sit up only to become aware of a weight on his arm. 

Green eyes darted over to his left. His arm was numb, having fallen asleep under the weight of someone's head. Shoulders were too broad to be Wendy or Ariel, too narrow to be Jake... Rocky. Of course. Briefly, Billy wondered if he could free his arm and get up without waking the youngest Rescue Hero. He quickly abandoned the idea, he could barely move the arm how he was he supposed to gently slide it out from under Rocky's head? 

Okay, he was stuck here then. Now what? He had no way of finding out how the mission went or even figuring out how long he'd been out. Not right now anyway. He sighed, letting his head hit the pillow. 

He supposed attempting to go back to sleep would be an option, but it didn't sound like a particularly good option. He wasn't tired, and he doubted he could sleep without knowing if everyone was alright. Or as alright as they could be considering Jack was also in sick bay. 

So, what did that leave? Attempting to figure out what happened to him. Not that there was much he could examine. He knew the thorn in his hand had been the culprit, the mark it left stinging and aching worse and worse by the hour. Then the dizziness that came and went before becoming a constant, pounding behind his eyes refusing to go away. Why a single thorn had caused all of that he could only guess. Some kind of poison seemed to be the most likely. 

Before he could begin to puzzle out if it was the kind of poison his body had been able to fight off on its own or if he'd needed an antidote of some kind, Rocky began to mumble in his sleep. It took only a few moments for the mumbling to turn to panicked cries. "No... Don't. You can't! Don't go... No! Billy!" 

"Rocky, I'm right here." Unable to free his arm, he shifted onto his side so he could reach over with his other arm. The palm of his right hand was still tender, but that didn't stop him. He shook Rocky by the shoulder. "Wake up."

* * *

_Rocky didn't recognize where he was. Everything was grey and fuzzy. He couldn't see a floor but he was standing on something solid. He looked around before a bright flash drew his attention. The white light stood like an open doorway, and in front of it was a familiar figure._

_Billy's deeply tanned skin had gone unnaturally pale, green eyes glossed over and unseeing. He was facing the light, slow uneven footsteps taking him towards it. He was like a dead man walking._

_Oh wait. The horror of what Rocky was seeing set in and he began moving._

_"No... Don't." The distance between them was rapidly closing. Rocky didn't even know he could run that fast. "You can't! Don't go..." He reached out to grab Billy's arm... and went through him. "No!"_

_Wide eyes watched in fear as Billy kept going, deaf to his cries. That didn't mean Rocky stopped though. "Billy!" He ran to stand in front of him, holding his hands out to stop him. "Billy, stop!"_

_The man walked through him, not even aware he was there. This couldn't be happening. This wasn't happening. He turned, stubbornly attempting to grab Billy's arm again. His hand closed around nothing. He couldn't stop him. His vision was beginning to blur as he watched Billy get closer and closer to the bright light._

_"Billy!" He was practically screaming at this point. Billy wasn't stopping, why wouldn't he stop?_

"Rocky!" He was jarred awake by a shout and someone shaking him. The dream - nightmare - faded leaving Rocky staring at a shadowy figure in the dimly lit sick bay. Who...? "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." Billy. 

_Billy!_

Words could not convey the jumble of emotions running through him so Rocky didn't even try. He just hugged him tightly. He didn't even care if Billy was still mad at him. 

* * *

Admittedly, Billy was no stranger to waking his teammates up from nightmares. Their quarters were along the same corridor and he was a light sleeper. It didn't take much for panicked cries to reach him and wake him. That said, Rocky lunging forward to hug him was an unusual reaction. 

Typically the kid tried to deny he had a nightmare, mumbling something about how he was fine. It usually took two tries to get him to talk about it - if he would talk about it. This... this was new. Billy wasn't sure if he should be concerned or not. Then again, considering it was his name Rocky had been shouting... One thing at a time. 

"I'm right here," he repeated, shifting to properly return the hug, "I'm not going anywhere, Rocky." 

He felt a nod against his shoulder. 

The silence grew between them, comfortable and patient. He had a lot of questions, but he didn't want to bombard Rocky. He didn't speak until the trembling stopped. "Wanna talk about it?" It was more of an offer rather than a question. 

"Not really," Rocky mumbled as he pulled away. Even in the dim light it wasn't hard to make out him not so subtly wiping at his eyes with the cuff of his sleeve. Before Billy had a chance to say anything, Rocky dove into a report of the events he'd missed. The mission had been a success, Jack's injuries were minor he was just being kept over night. Billy's illness had been the result of poison, the antidote of which had come from the root of the plant. Wendy had retrieved it from the volcano and Matt made the antidote. 

They hadn't been sure it would work though. Which explained Rocky's reaction to seeing him awake. 

"It was my fault," Rocky muttered. "If I had just listened to you it would have never happened. I'm sorry, Billy." 

"We all make mistakes, Rocky," Billy answered. "The important thing is learning from them." 

"Oh trust me, I learned." Rocky nodded. He lowered his gaze, shoulders hunched, "But it could have cost you your life." 

"Could have, but it didn't," Billy pointed out. "And I... uh... didn't make things easy. I should have admitted that I was sick and handed over command. I endangered the team and the mission... and myself." Difficult to admit, but he had to be honest. His pride was just as dangerous as Rocky's, if not more so. 

"Wendy pointed out the same thing," Rocky murmured. 

"Well, she's right." Despite the situation, Billy chuckled, "I wouldn't be surprised if the first thing she does is ground me." 

Rocky grinned, "Good, 'cause that's exactly what she plans to do." 

**Author's Note:**

> Rocky might be a little too emotional here, I don't know for sure. I'm still not quite used to writing with these characters. Though I'm probably going to write more because I love the big brother dynamic Billy has with the team. Small fun fact: Rescue Heroes was the first cartoon I ever wrote fanfiction for. I was in 4th grade at the time.


End file.
